Why do atheists celebrate xmas?

I just had a guy ask if atheists celebrate xmas on twitter.. I replied that I do indeed celebrate the holidays in the context of having the opportunity to have time off work, spend time with family, give/receive gifts, eat and drink loads and generally have a nice time.. he was pretty annoyed by my response and stated that this was hypocrisy.. he also had an issue with the fact I would receive gifts from friends/family as this time of year was to celebrate Jesus birthday only.... for me to inform him I would be partaking in the holiday season, yet stating in no way religious, I was dismissed as having double standards.

Do you celebrate xmas, this holiday period? what are your thoughts? Is it hypocritical to receive gifts and partake in family dinners? Personally I take full advantage of a lovely time of year.. CHRIST does not come into it!

Some people take this stuff too seriously. You know, the Arms of Canada has a unicorn in the design. Do I believe in unicorns? No. Am I going to fight against the Royal Coat of Arms just because I don't believe? No. Unicorns (conceptually) are rad, the tradition is almost a century old, and ultimately, it doesn't have a tangible negative impact. I don't need to believe the mythology to grasp its symbolic and cultural value.

Christmas is kind of the same for me. It is part of my history, even including the aspects of the traditions cobbled together from various religions. I enjoy those traditions -- some of them, connect me to the vestiges of my familial heritage --, and can celebrate them without having to actually believe in the supporting mythology. It's not much different from reading a fantasy novel imo; I can indulge in the story and let my imagination slip into that realm without ever, for a second, deluding myself into thinking it is real.

Ha! A lot of people ask this .. but to me I don’t see anything wrong with Christmas . it can bring a family together for one.. but as a kid I think I would have felt pretty left out if everyone in school were getting cool presents and I didn’t .. that would suck.. second.. it stimulates the economy .. even if you just are stuck at work on a secret Santa ..you have to buy a present you wouldn’t have otherwise you spend money…lots of people spend a lot of money during the holidays and it just great for the economy .. I don’t have an issue ,if I ever have kids or even my nieces and nephews , I don’t have an issue buying them presents and celebrating Xmas.. just as long as they realize that when they get older that Santa is not real ….(duh right!) no but also realize that neither is baby Jesus ..

I get together with friends and family and fortunately they're all casual-enough christians that nobody prays before we eat. I am considering celebrating in a new way, by hosting my own blasphemous "piss-mas" party. There will be cake, and everyone will be given a bible that they can piss on if they wish before tossing into a bonfire.

Personally I love xmas, its a fab time of year.. whats not to love about being off and get stuffed full of food and drink and getting/receiving presents while spending quality time with family.. I do like the idea of a blasphemous piss-mas party! I reckon that could go viral John.. haha :)

I think its Xtians who have the double standards, judging others while they pretend to have morals though won't stand for homophobia and kill in the name of God! God is not great!

first of all, christians stole christmas from the pagans. the pagans started it not the christians. if christians have the right to steal and twist holidays and stuff. so do we. they celebrate christmas. christmas wasnt about jesus to begin with. christians made it about him, as they have everything else in life.

Like it has been mentioned already, the holiday comes from the pagans, and the gift giving from the Roman holiday Saturnalia. So, nothing hypocritical there. Just because we don't have imaginary friends, doesn't mean we cant spend a day off with our real ones.

I don't celebrate Christmas. No tree, no lights, no big dinner, nothing. Even the two or three Xmas cards I send out say, "Happy Holidays." I even avoid TV movies on the "Lifetime" and "Hallmark" channels. Of course, I must admit that it's mostly because they all end the same way: with snow starting to fall in the final scene. Where I live, that's what you call "carrying coals to Newcastle." It's all part of the War on Christmas I conduct in order to get Bill O"Reilly and Sean Hannity pissed off.

That being said, I do exchange gifts with my brother and his family. He and I have shared Xmas Eves EVERY year since 1938.; but there is no hint of it being religious observance of any kind.

Yes, we steal the one day a year they go to church, act like they actually like their drunk brother who just got out of jail, put up with his fat girlfriend with the tramp stamp and her six kids from different fathers. The one day they eat a lot of food, pretend they're actually good people and that they genuinely love their families, and the one day they even think about doing something that might come close to being able to see the definition of christian if it stood on its toes and used a spyglass. Damn us atheists for being genuinely good people who just want to take time out to be with our families. Guys, we're such assholes, how do we live with ourselves? I think I'll go convert, right now, just so I can be a hippocritical slave who doesn't have the responsibility of using their own mind, or making up their own holidays. Whose with me?

I do not celebrate Christmas in any way shape or form and actually detest the whole affair - but not because I'm an Atheist. Aside from being an Atheist, I'm a minimalist, partially because I have ecological concerns but also because I feel that 'simple living' is better. Anyway, just some personal values that I have that really do not stem from whether or not I believe in invisible sky-fairies.

This year I will be violating my own principles, though, at least in principle. I am taking some home-made wine to work to give to my colleagues and they will perceive this as Christmas gifting, to be sure. I am doing this mostly to encourage the servers to be more diligent in sourcing me good bottles for my wine making hobby (we work in a 'bring your own wine' restaurant), however, and not in celebration of Gluttonfest, as I've come to call it. The bottles are recycled and the wine is a home craft prepared from a sustainable product so I still feel I am keeping to my minimalist values. :D